World Junior Hockey Championships 2016 Results: Tuesday Group Scores, Reaction
The 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships continued Tuesday in Helsinki with two of the top gold-medal contenders in the tournament looking to improve their standing ahead of the elimination round.
The 2011 gold medalists in Russia took on rival Belarus in the first game of the day prior to reigning champion Canada seeking out its second win of the tourney against a struggling Switzerland squad.
Here is a full rundown of the results from Tuesday's slate of games, including a recap of each contest and a look at how the group standings currently sit.
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Tuesday's Scores
| B | Russia | Belarus | 4-1, Russia |
| A | Canada | Switzerland | 3-2 (SO), Canada |
Group A Standings
| 1 | Sweden | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2 | Canada | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | United States | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Denmark | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 5 | Switzerland | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Group B Standings
| 1 | Russia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | Czech Republic | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Finland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Slovakia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 5 | Belarus | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Russia vs. Belarus
After beating the Czech Republic in a shootout and upending the hosts, Finland, the level of competition got a bit easier for Russia on Tuesday as it took on the unheralded Belarusians at Hartwall Arena.
Belarus certainly looked overmatched on paper, and that is the way it played out on the ice, as the Russians came away with a convincing 4-1 victory.
Alexander Polunin netted a pair of goals for Russia, while Maxim Lazarev and Vladislav Kamenev added a goal and an assist each.
Defenseman Ivan Provorov—who was the No. 7 overall pick in the 2015 NHL draft by the Philadelphia Flyers—also added an assist, and he especially impressed ESPN.com's Corey Pronman with his play:
Russia is best known for its speed and skill offensively, but it locked down from a defensive perspective Tuesday, allowing just 18 shots, 17 of which were turned aside by goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who was selected in the first round of the 2015 draft by the Washington Capitals.
Having now taken eight of a possible nine points, the Russians find themselves in firm control of Group B over the Czech Republic, Finland and Slovakia.
Russia's only remaining group clash is with the Slovaks, who shocked the hockey world by securing a bronze medal in this tournament last year.
If Russia can either manage to win that game or get some help in the other contests, then it stands to nab the No. 1 Group B seed in the knockout round, which gives it a significant advantage in terms of advancing to at least the semifinals.
Canada vs. Switzerland
Most expected Canada to have little trouble with Switzerland after the Swiss started the tournament 0-2, including a loss to Denmark, but the Canadians were pushed to the limit in a 3-2 shootout victory.
According to TSN's Mark Masters, it was Switzerland's best performance against Canada at the World Junior Championships to date:
While the win wasn't a convincing one, Canada still managed to clinch a spot in the knockout round by virtue of its victory, per TSN.
Switzerland jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals from Damien Riat and Dario Meyer, but Canada was able to get on the board with 23 seconds remaining in the opening frame thanks to a goal from Arizona Coyotes No. 3 overall draft pick Dylan Strome.
Canada then tied it up in the second off a goal from defenseman Joe Hicketts, and after a scoreless third period, the teams surprisingly went to overtime.
Neither side was able to net a game-winner in the extra five minutes, but Canada came out on top in the shootout by virtue of goals by both Brayden Point and Mathew Barzal.
Picking up the win by any means necessary was paramount for Canada, but doing so in the shootout puts it in danger of finishing no better than third in its group.
Sweden is in control with two wins to its credit, while the United States can lock up at least second with regulation wins over Denmark and Switzerland after having already beaten the Canadians.
Team Canada is certainly talented enough to beat anyone en route to its potential second straight gold medal, but doing so from the No. 3 seed would likely be an extremely difficult endeavor.
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